HUNTINGDON, PA- The Juniata women's volleyball team closed out the regular season with two more 3-0 sweeps over York College and Baldwin Wallace University on Saturday at home.
At noon, the Eagles faced the Spartans of York College.
The Eagles started this game strong, winning eight of the ten points. They replicated that score in the following ten points to carry a 16-4 lead into the final portion of the set. After a timeout, the Spartans gained some momentum though. They began to chip away at the Juniata lead, eventually winning five consecutive points late to make it 23-17. The deficit from the earlier parts of the set was simply too much to overcome, and the Eagles would take set one 25-17 on an Audrey Muth kill.
Set two began very similarly to set one, as the Eagles opened it with a 9-2 run. This time, their strong play would remain consistent throughout the set, and York were unable to mount any pressure on the Eagles. Another 8-1 run boosted the Eagles later in set two, which they would win convincingly. A York attack error sealed the 25-9 set victory.
The third set against the Spartans got off to a more shaky start for the Eagles. The teams traded points early, and York held a 5-6 lead before the Eagles found their footing. And of course, by "found their footing," I mean that they won 12 of the next 15 points to establish an eight-point cushion. At 17-9, York could resist, but it was only a matter of time before the Eagles reached 25 points. Molly Mishinkash spiked home the final point as the Eagles took set three, 25-15.
Lily Podolan led the Eagles in kills in match one with 11 while Olivia Foley totaled 21 assists. Kiona Sky Rousset-Hernandez made 12 digs in the sweep of the Spartans.
Later, the Eagles came back into the gym to host Baldwin Wallace University at 5:00 p.m.
Set one was the closest, with the Yellow Jackets never letting the Eagles go on their typical big run. A late kill by the visitors brought them within two, 21-19, before a Muth kill and an attack error put JC up by four, their biggest lead of the set. The Yellow Jackets took the next point via a kill, before an attack error gave Juniata set point and Podolan ended the set as she smacked down a free ball to end set one 25-20.
Set two saw the Eagles rattle off first five points of the set, but the Yellow Jackets battled back and hung around, getting within two at 15-13. Juniata had enough off that, as three Mackenzie Coley kills with a block and two Mia Schubert aces helped spark 7-0 run that blew the set open. The Eagles took the set on an attack error, 25-14.
Set three featured a 14-4 Eagle sprint midway through the set that ballooned the Eagle lead to 13 on another Coley kill. Sitting on match point, Muth ended it with a kill to the back middle of the court.
Coley led the way with 12 kills (.429) with an ace, a dig, a solo block and a block assist. Kennedy Christy added six kills, four aces, eight digs and a block assist.
The Eagles have now officially completed a perfect regular season at 27-0 overall, 9-0 in conference play, having dropped three sets all year, with the winning streak now sitting at 89 consecutive games. They will begin the postseason next Thursday night at 7:00 p.m. as the number one seed in the semifinals of the Landmark Conference tournament when they host the winner of Susquehanna University (#4) and Catholic University (#5).
